Will the hosts have problems? Uzbekistan vs North Korea Prediction
One of the matches in the first round of the third stage of Asian qualification for the World Cup will take place on Thursday in Tashkent, where Uzbekistan will host North Korea. Here’s a match prediction from the Dailysports expert team.
Uzbekistan
The "White Wolves" are rightfully considered one of the strongest teams in Asia, but they have yet to qualify for a World Cup. In the Asian Cup earlier this year, Uzbekistan reached the quarterfinals, only to be eliminated by Qatar, the eventual champions, in a penalty shootout.
During the second stage of the World Cup qualification, Uzbekistan confidently secured second place, losing out to Iran only on tiebreakers. In six matches, Uzbekistan remained undefeated, drawing twice with Iran—2:2 at home and 0:0 away.
North Korea
North Korea's most significant achievement was their participation in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. "Chollima" put up a strong fight against Brazil, losing 1:2, but they set a record for the most goals conceded in the group stage, with twelve goals allowed (against Portugal and Ivory Coast) and only one scored.
North Korea has appeared in three Asian Cups from 2011 to 2019 but never advanced past the group stage. In the second stage of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, North Korea managed three wins out of six matches. With 9 points, they finished second in their group, trailing Japan by nine points.
Interesting Facts and Head-to-Head History
- Uzbekistan has defeated North Korea in their last two encounters.
- In the last two matches between these teams, only Uzbekistan scored, although the "Both Teams to Score" bet won in the previous three matches.
- The "Total Over 2.5" bet won in four of the last five matches.
Uzbekistan vs North Korea Prediction
Odds for an Uzbekistan win are around 1.46, with the odds dropping, indicating a lot of bets on this outcome. We recommend betting on "Uzbekistan to win with a -1.0 handicap" at odds of 1.79.
